Cushman & Wakefield Breaks Ground Via Pact With EPA

Cushman & Wakefield became the first real estate company to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the EPA in order to address environmental issues in the commercial real estate sector.

The MOU lays out environmental best practices to enhance energy efficiency and reduce carbon footprint, promote water conservation, and minimize waste within the company’s corporate offices and in properties under management.

Cushman & Wakefield collectively manages about 3,200 properties, or 265 million square feet of commercial real estate – 70 million of which is in New York City. (Energy consumption in commercial buildings accounts for 17 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.)

To minimize the impact of its managed properties, Cushman & Wakefield will join two new EPA partnership programs: WasteWise, which promotes waste reduction and resource conservation, and GreenScapes, which provides environmentally-friendly solutions for landscaping.

It will use its Green Practice Policies to guide clients in adopting sustainable approaches to pest management, construction, purchasing, cleaning, solid waste management, and control of environmental tobacco smoke.

Cushman & Wakefield is the world’s largest privately held commercial real estate services firm. It has 227 offices worldwide and more than 15,000 employees – about one-third of which are in the U.S.